Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Konnichiwa Kumihimo!

Kumihimo is a Japanese form of braid-making. Cords and ribbons are made by interlacing strands.In Japan, braids are also used for religious ceremonies, on kimonos, ornaments on festival carts, tea ceremony containers, ribbons for mirrors, and fans, and most recently for attaching cell phones to belts, purses, etc.

When I first saw a bracelet made using the Kumihimo technique I was intrigued. I just knew I wanted to learn how to create this beautiful piece of art. As I researched the internet to see how it was done, I was floored! I thought I would need to hire someone to build me a bamboo stand (pictured right) just to make projects! My instincts told me this couldn't be the only way, so I decided to add Kumihimo Braiding to my course schedule.

In class I was excited to learn that I only needed a foam disk to begin creating. The class was interesting and the technique is not as complicated as it looks. I picked it up right away, and I now have my first Kumihimo bracelet (on the left) created. So, say hello or konnichiwa to my brand new technique and stay tuned to see lots of Kumihimo pieces sold on essentialsetc.net!